The Whigs - In The Dark

Show

Morning Magazine,

Author

Joey K

Published

Wednesday 25th August

Rogue through Inertia

Apparently Rolling Stone proclaimed this Georgian band as one of the top 10 artists to watch back in 2006. I’m not sure if this says more about the state of contemporary rock music or Rolling Stone. Probably both.

Like the Kings of Leon before them (who they have toured with and are oft compared to), The Whigs draw from the well of 90’s alternative influences (The Screaming Trees, The Replacements, Pixies, Spoon etc) and then pass them through a mainstream filter to produce bland rock anthems for a bland rock generation. For all its noisy feedback bluster and record company hyperbole, ‘In The Dark’ is remarkably unremarkable, an uber-generic shot at the stadium stardom of The Kings minus any sense of genuine soul.

The grunge revival was always going to be coming but I had hoped it might have more passion and substance to it than this. It’s no wonder that 80’s and 90s bands are headlining all of our major rock festivals right now. Contemporary artists like The Whigs can only offer a shadow of their fire.